Results for Blancpain

Jaquet Droz Unveils Pièce Unique for TimeForArt

The Jaquet Droz Petite Heure Minute Les Volumes du Temps is a unique watch created for the upcoming TimeForArt charity auction, penned by a student artist at the Académie de Meuron. Its dragging hour and minute discs depart from conventional hands, while the sculptural dial showcases the elaborate enamelling for which Jaquet Droz is known. Jaquet Droz CEO Alain Delamuraz (left) with Fiona Djukanovic (centre) Initial thoughts The Petite Heure Minute Les Volumes du Temps draws on Jaquet Droz’s expertise in métiers d’art, particularly grand feu enamel, to support a worthy cause. It differs from the brand’s familiar format primarily through its dial, designed by Fiona Djukanovic, a student at the Académie de Meuron in Neuchâtel. Its X-shaped composition reveals two apertures, one for the dragging hours and another for the dragging minutes. The display borrows its functionality from the Ophidian Hour introduced last year, with a module fitted to a variant of the familiar Jaquet Droz cal. JD2653. Both the hour and minute discs advance gradually, rather than jumping between numerals. The movement is a descendent of the Frédéric Piguet cal. 1150, a twin-barrel architecture that has provided good service to brands like Blancpain and Urban Jürgensen for nearly 40 years. Beyond this functional change, Ms Djukanovic’s design combines shades of blue with champlevé and flinqué enamel over hand engraving, emphasising the depth and volume of the dial’s architecture. Des...

Hamilton Introduces the American Classic Cushion Mechanical

We’re at an interesting time when it comes to the dialogue in the watch community on vintage inspired watches. Watches that make explicit references to the past are simply less common now than they were a decade ago, or even 4 or 5 years ago. I’ve long believed that a maturing group of collectors who entered the hobby when these watches were all the rage have aged into a point in their collecting journeys when more adventurous and contemporary designs simply have more interest.  But this theory really only applies to what most of us refer to as “midcentury” watches. Think about the earliest dive watches from Rolex, Blancpain, and others, the types of dress and everyday watches worn by Don Draper on Mad Men, and extending through to the earliest bits of 60s and 70s funkiness. That’s the vintage inspired wheelhouse for watch brands seeking to tap into the community’s desire to commune with the past, whether through real or imagined nostalgia. Watches from a century ago are an entirely different category.  Enter the Hamilton American Classic Cushion Mechanical. This is an entirely new collection from the brand that finds them looking to designs from the 1920s for inspiration. Watches from this period never really had a widespread moment of resurgence like divers from the 1960s, but if you’ve spent some time in the hobby you’ve undoubtedly encountered collectors who are deeply into exactly this kind of thing. There are a number of interesting reasons to colle...

Hands On: Blancpain Lady B

The charming and compact Lady B extends Blancpain’s collection of elegant ladies watches while upholding the brand’s longstanding commitment to mechanical calibres. At just 19 mm in size and almost spherical in form, the Lady B contains an upmarket automatic movement that transcends the quartz-powered norms for this segment of watchmaking. Initial thoughts The Lady B is the spiritual successor to the Ladybird Bullet, which introduced the world’s smallest round mechanical movement when it debuted 70 years ago under the leadership of Betty Fiechter, the first woman to lead a major Swiss watch brand. The “round” qualifier is important because the smallest mechanical movement — then, as now — was the Jaeger-LeCoultre cal. 101, which is still in production but in extremely limited numbers, and reserved for high jewellery collections. The Lady B (left) with the original Ladybird Bullet from 1956 The Lady B is larger than the vintage Bullet, but at just 19 mm it’s still small enough that the size is the main point of intrigue. The watch is almost spherical being 13 mm thick, but rather than feeling too thick this aspect gives the watch a charming bead-like feel similar to the original Bullet. The spherical feel is completed by the absence of conventional lugs; the Lady B instead features a pass-through channel for a selection of interchangeable straps. This hypothetically allows multiple Lady B’s to be “stacked” on the same strap for a jewellery-like look, b...

Blancpain Lady B: The Tiny Mechanical Sphere That Celebrates 70 Years of the Ladybird

A miniature revival that honors both a legendary collection and the woman who saved the brand

New releases from Blancpain, Czapek, Grand Seiko and more

This past week has been one for the ages. Rolex announces an annual calendar carrying an official nickname for the first time, Blancpain releases one of the smallest mechanical movements to date, and Grand Seiko brings back Arabic numerals after 25 years. There’s plenty more too, spanning other all sort of styles and budgets with … Continued

First Look - The Blancpain Lady B, a Small, Spherical and yet Mechanical Wrist-Worn Jewel

With its motto of never producing quartz watches, its manufacturing capabilities and its rich heritage in dive watches, Blancpain is often spontaneously associated with technical, masculine watchmaking. But this overlooks an important chapter in the brand’s history. In the middle of the 20th century, its development was driven by Betty Fiechter, a remarkable figure at […]

Introducing: Blancpain Celebrates The 70th Anniversary Of The Ladybird Collection With The Mini "Lady B" Revival

What We Know In 1932, a 36-year-old woman took a massive gamble early in her career at Blancpain. Betty Fiechter, who had worked for the brand since she was 16, faced a dilemma after the sudden death of the brand's owner, Frederic-Emile Blancpain. Together with commercial director Andre Leal, she helped secure loans to buy the company, even navigating the need to rename the manufacture because the Swiss government prevented anyone but someone with that name from using Blancpain. Fiechter would eventually mentor her nephew, Jean-Jacques Fiechter, and together they would inaugurate two of the brand's most successful icons: the Fifty Fathoms and the Ladybird. The original Ladybird Bullet The launch of the Ladybird in 1956 was a big deal, not just because a woman led a manufacturer in an era when women couldn't even vote in Switzerland. Inside the original Ladybird "Bullet" was the R55, the smallest round mechanical movement, and one with extra durability, with a fifth wheel to limit the force on the escapement and a shock protector on the balance wheel. It remains the smallest round mechanical movement to this day. To honor that watch, Fiechter, and the 70th anniversary of the Ladybird, Blancpain is releasing a new Lady B (for bullet, I'm sure, but also Betty and, according to the brand, bijou or "jewel") with very tiny dimensions. The watch measures a tiny 19mm by 13.2mm in either stainless steel or 18k red gold, with a total volume of only 2.9 cm³. Despite its size, it has...

12 Watches With Complications You've Never Heard Of

A look at 12 watches with unusual complications you've never heard of ranging from brands like Rolex to Blancpain.

AWCo and Squale Return With 60 More NOS Blancpain-Cased Divers

In 2020, Squale teamed up with Amsterdam Watch Company for a truly memorable collaboration: two “Fifty Fathoms” divers using NOS cases from the 1950s, originally manufactured by Squale for Blancpain (technically, this was pre-Squale, which was established in 1959, so the cases would have been made under Von Büren SA). It’s a unique type of watch that only pops up once every few years, if that. NOS cases make them part vintage, part modern. That’s always intriguing, but even more so when the cases come from watches that are so coveted, rare, and, frankly, expensive. Priced at around $2k at the time and limited to 60 pieces each, they sold out the same day, leaving many collectors, such as yours truly, wishing they had pulled the trigger a little faster. In 2020, however, AWCo teased that more would be coming, noting that Squale had access to 180 NOS cases in total, not just the 120 used for those first two editions. That left 60 more for a third. Well, that day has come with the launch of the AWCo x Squale Milbino. A logical but no less exciting addition to the series, the Milbino takes inspiration from mil-spec Fifty Fathoms watches. The telltale feature, which is hard to miss, is the moisture indicator on the dial. Created in the 1950s as a safety feature for military divers, it would change color if moisture breached the case seals, quickly letting the diver know that their watch had been compromised. A cool, practical detail that has since become collector catn...

MB&F;’s M.A.D.3 Honours Vincent Calabrese

For it’s third M.A.D. Edition, MB&F; has reimagined Vincent Calabrese’s signature jumping hours complication. While still allocated via raffle, the M.A.D.3 Vincent Calabrese represents a significant departure for MB&F;’s entry level sub-brand, being the first to fully conceal the winding rotor and the first to be based on a historical design from a notable watchmaker. Initial thoughts Vincent Calabrese is a pioneering independent watchmaker who co-founded the Académie Horlogère des Créateurs Indépendants (AHCI) alongside Svend Andersen in 1985. Mr Calabrese is perhaps most well known for developing highly original movements for other brands including the Corum Golden Bridge and the first-ever flying tourbillon wristwatch movement for Blancpain in 1989. But Mr Calabrese also produced watches under his own name, including the Baladin that served as the inspiration for M.A.D.3. Maximilian Büsser and Mr Calabrese have been friends for years and discussed collaborating on a watch project many times, but the M.A.D.3 is their first joint effort. The M.A.D.3 is affordable as such things go, at CHF2,900. That’s roughly equivalent to where original Baladins trade on the secondary market, depending on the specifics. But the M.A.D.3 is a worthy remake in a more contemporary size and should prove more reliable and easier to service when the time comes. For better or worse, the solid value proposition almost dictates a mechanism to manage demand, so buying a M.A.D.3 isn’t a...

Blancpain Introduces the Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe 70th Anniversary Limited Edition

You know, I actually wasn’t going to write about this watch. An $18,000 vintage inspired dive watch from a brand that doesn’t hold a ton of personal relevance to me was just not super high on my list of priorities as Geneva Watch Days prep is now in full swing (this time next week, I will be surviving on CHF 10 Coke Zeros). But, over the weekend the collective watch internet kind of lost its mind over the new Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe 70th Anniversary Limited Edition, so I shifted my to-do list around a bit and, well, here we are.  Of course, there have been a lot of memes and jokes about this watch sharing a certain similarity to the Seiko 62MAS and the many, many reinterpretations and reissues of that watch over the years. I’m frankly less interested in those aesthetic similarities than I am in the very conceit of this watch, what it illuminates about Blancpain, and the way it fits into the neverending conversation around price sensitivity that we’ve been having for months as we see MSRPs shoot higher and higher. But what I’ll say about the appearance of the Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe 70th Anniversary Limited Edition is simply that, at this point, 70 years on from the advent of this type of watch, I don’t think any brand really owns the aesthetic identity of something so generic. Lots and lots of watches from all kinds of brands look like this, just like lots and lots of watches look like a Speedmaster, or a Calatrava. The design tropes of these wat...

Last Week In Watches: Blancpain Returns to 1968, Norqain Goes Titanium, Czapek Turns Aqua Blue and more

Man Who Called $3,500 Seiko a “Cash Grab” Pre-Orders $18,300 Blancpain, Cites “Heritage”

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Sunday Morning Showdown: Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe 70th Anniversary Vs. Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Automatique 38

Good morning, and welcome to another Sunday Morning Showdown. Blancpain surprised us this week with a vintage reissue of its 1968 Bathyscaphe. The 37.4mm case of the new Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe 70th Anniversary features a sunburst dial and faux patina, while there’s a ceramic bezel insert and a modern automatic movement inside. Of course, Blancpain […] Visit Sunday Morning Showdown: Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe 70th Anniversary Vs. Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Automatique 38 to read the full article.

Blancpain celebrates 70 years of diving with a new Bathyscaphe

Blancpain celebrates 70 years of dive watch heritage with the Bathyscaphe 70th Anniversary Limited Edition, a recreation of the classic 1968 version.

Blancpain Faithfully Revisits 1968 Bathyscaphe

Blancpain is marking the 70th anniversary of its lesser-known dive watch with the 1960s-inspired Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe. With a faithful 37.4 mm steel case and high-end movement, the Bathyscaphe will likely be welcomed by collectors who have been waiting for a more compact Fifty Fathoms. Initial thoughts Blancpain has an unusually rich history of producing dive watches — the Fifty Fathoms dates to 1953 and introduced the now-ubiquitous rotating dive bezel at roughly the same time as the Rolex Submariner. Blancpain’s early divers were commercial products aimed at military customers — then the only sizable market for such watches. That changed in 1956, when growing consumer interest in diving led to the release of the Bathyscaphe. This historic name was reborn in 2013, but the contemporary interpretation of the line was a significant aesthetic departure from the look of the original 1950s and 1960s models. Somewhat confusingly, Blancpain is marking the 70th anniversary of the Bathyscaphe with an homage to a 1968 model. Timeline aside, the anniversary edition features a period-correct 37.4 mm case and beige Super-LumiNova to capture the aged look of surviving originals. The arrow-tipped running seconds hand is another charming detail that reproduces the original look to good effect. During the 1950s and 1960s, Blancpain waffled between serif and sans-serif wordmarks, and the brand has opted for the latter for the anniversary edition. To my eye it strikes just the rig...

Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe Marks 70 Years with 37mm Vintage Re-Edition

Marking the major milestone, the Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe 70th Anniversary Edition delivers a period-accurate case size with modern specs.

Blancpain Returns the Bathyscaphe to 1968 for its 70th Anniversary

Blancpain turns back the clock with its new Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe 70th Anniversary Limited Edition

Blancpain revives a 1968 Bathyscaphe for its 70th anniversary, with a 37.4mm case, vintage-inspired details and a 100-hour movement.

Introducing: Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe 70th Anniversary Limited Edition

What We Know The 1950s were big years for Blancpain—first in 1953 with the introduction of the Fifty Fathoms, then a few short years later in 1956, when the Bathyscaphe arrived as a "civilian counterpart" as diving gained popularity. Revived in 2013, it's remained a core part of the modern Fifty Fathoms lineup ever since. We're not strangers to the Bathyscaphe here at Hodinkee, either—we teamed up with Blancpain on our own limited edition back in 2019. Today, to mark the Bathyscaphe's 70th anniversary, Blancpain is releasing a 300-piece limited edition that takes inspiration from the 1968 reference and updates it in all the right ways. The homage to the '68 piece is evident at a quick glance; the first thing I noticed was the vintage Blancpain logo, which sets the tone for what the brand is trying to do here. The sunburst meteor grey dial is lifted straight from the 1968 piece as well, as are the baton hands and indexes in 18k white gold, both filled with a vintage-colored Super-LumiNova that gives the lume a warmer, aged look straight out of the box. The steel bezel extends into a ring at the base of the box crystal—another detail pulled directly from the '68 watch—and its ceramic insert with lacquered numerals swaps out the original's black hesalite. That same fidelity carries through to the case. At 37.4mm in stainless steel, it's sized to match the 1968 piece on which it draws inspiration, rather than the smaller 35mm case Blancpain used on the original 1956 Ba...

A Nice Vintage-Inspired Surprise: The Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe 70th Anniversary

Over the past few years, we have seen great changes within the Blancpain Fifty Fathoms lineup. The brand celebrated the 70th anniversary of its iconic diver in multiple “acts.” On top of that, Blancpain created a full collection of Fifty Fathoms models in different sizes, offering something for everyone and addressing an issue many enthusiasts […] Visit A Nice Vintage-Inspired Surprise: The Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe 70th Anniversary to read the full article.

First Look - Blancpain Goes Vintage with the new Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe 70th Anniversary

While the fact that the Blancpain Fifty Fathoms was one of the earliest dive watches on the market is now well-known, this professional, mostly military-issued model wasn’t the only one produced by the brand. There is another watch in the collection that was created back in 1956, as the civilian counterpart to the Fifty Fathoms […]

Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe 70th anniversary: a proper 1968 re-edition

37.4mm steel, box sapphire, meteor-grey sunburst dial, cal. 1150 with 100-hour reserve. Blancpain marks 70 years of the civilian diver with a faithful re-edition of the 1968 Bathyscaphe. 300 pieces, €14,850.

Bring a Loupe: A Wittnauer 235T, A Cleto Munari "Sotsy," A Blancpain Technisub, And An Eberhard Contograf

You hanging in there, Baller? It feels like it's been a hard bit, or at least it is with the folks I check in with. I hope that, despite whatever's frustrating you and causing grief—from stubbed toes to wildfires and their attendant smoke to your team not making enough moves at the trade deadline—you're getting by. And congrats, obviously, to all the Sixers fans. Strays Photo courtesy of Huntington Company. Perhaps, like me, you were unaware that in 1967 Bulova made an Accutron Astronaut in 18k gold, and if that sounds like fun, Goodwill's got one that's on an 18k JP Champion bracelet to boot. The good folks at Huntington Company have a bit of a left of the dial watch this week, this Sarcar triple date with moonphase, and a fun game to play is to imagine what it'd be priced at with a different name on the dial. If you're bored by watches that are too quiet, or you're interested in truly unhinged complications, here's a Boegli which features a music box that plays a bit of Mozart's "The Magic Flute." For those who missed their shot on the Louis Erard x Kudoke Regulator from a few years ago, here's a very very nice blue one, and if you'd prefer a different blue watch, this Rolex Oysterquartz Datejust is almost certainly not from 2005, as the listing says (it's got a tritium dial, for one, plus the reference 17000 ceased production in 2001), but it certainly looks in great shape. Finally, here's a phenomenally pretty gold Audemars Piguet Day Date Moonphase (almost certain...

Hands on: Blancpain Villeret Ultraplate - now in 38mm!

The Blancpain Villeret Ultraplate is now available in 38mm. We got a quick look and here is our impressions on the salmon dial variant.

Hands-on - The Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Tech Date, a Truly Purposeful Three-Hour Dive Watch

Dive watches are, by nature, rather conservative instruments. Since the 1950s, the basics have barely changed: a robust water-resistant case, luminous hands and markers, and a rotating bezel, often undirectional, graduated over 60 minutes. Blancpain played a big part in setting up these design codes with the Fifty Fathoms during the 1950s. Seventy years later, […]

How a $2 Million Dollar Watch Is Made

Filmed in Switzerland, explore the seven-figure masterpiece featuring a Grande Double Sonnerie composed by a rock legend. This is a rare opportunity to experience the extraordinary craftsmanship behind the mechanical marvel with more than 1,000 components and twenty one patents. After eight years of development and limited to just two units per year requiring hundreds of hours of intricate handwork by two specialist watchmakers, discover every detail that goes into making Blancpain's most complicated watch ever.More

Blancpain Villeret Ultraplate 38mm: Smaller Case, Softer Dials, Better Proportions

Blancpain shrinks its ultra-thin dress watch to 38mm and debuts a first-ever sunburst salmon dial for the Villeret line